‘One of the window shutters in the master bedroom has not come down. There must be a fault in the security system.’

‘A fault, you say?’ he replied, his fingers gripping into the leather.

‘Yes, I believe so.’

‘All of the other shutters are working correctly, yes?’ he asked.

‘Yes.’

Lara waited patiently for further instruction. There had never been such an issue in the past. Although she couldn’t have understood the reasons behind the doctor’s odd aversion to the night, she knew that he wouldn’t set foot inside any room unless the shutters were locked in place.

‘Shall I prepare another bedroom for you?’ she asked.

‘Would you mind? I’ll see to it that you’re compensated for staying on so late.’

‘It’s no problem,’ Lara said, retreating quietly. ‘It won’t take me a moment, Doctor.’

She truly bore the most wonderful likeness to her mother, standing by the side – metaphorically speaking – of a man who had no one else; no remaining family, no friends, not even a hound hard-wired to sit by his legs like a painted ceramic. Such loyalty, he liked to believe, was not evoked by salary. That’s partly why he never spoke to Lara or her mother about their genuine regard for him as a person rather than their employer. Some hopes, especially ones so desperate, were best left unexplored.

He would make a phone call first thing in the morning. Such malfunctions were unacceptable. It had cost Alec a small fortune to upgrade every window in his home. The technicians had thought him strange. Why would someone wilfully imprison themselves in their home night after night? They misunderstood the man’s motivation. The purpose of the shutters was never to keep anything in.

After another timid rap on the door, Lara returned, wearing her yellow raincoat, and holding a woollen hat in her hands. Alec rose from his chair and looked to her for some report. So seldom did the doctor speak to another person that he never quite knew what to say. He was aware that he came across as old-fashioned. Speaking informally was a skill he had never mastered. The same could be said for smiling.

‘I’ve prepared the room at the end of the hall,’ Lara said. ‘And I’ve closed the door to the master bedroom. You might wish to lock it before retiring. Is there anything else I can do for you before I go?’

‘No, no,’ he replied, ‘you’ve done more than enough, thank you.’